The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s First Wave program welcomed MC Lyte, a distinguished hip-hop artist, to campus Monday to discuss ways hip-hop can send positive messages to youth, and how teachers can use the messages to improve education.
The lecture was one in a series of lectures scheduled by the Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives to explore the role of hip-hop in solving achievement gaps in education.
MC Lyte, who has collaborated with artists such as Missy Elliott and Janet Jackson, said modern rap and hip-hop songs send negative messages to students because of inappropriate lyrics and said teachers should use classic hip-hop that “actually meant something” in their curriculum.
“I always tell the story of what hip-hop used to be, but still can be,” MC Lyte said. “And [that story] still lives in many of us who see it necessary to propel hip-hop to the heights of where it should be.”
Additionally, MC Lyte praised UW-Madison’s First Wave program for its efforts to integrate the art of hip-hop into everyday education, and asked the group to create an album so she can share First Wave’s story.
“First Wave is something that I so wish I had when I was in school,” MC Lyte said. “I am completely optimistic [for the future] because First Wave exists.”
The emcee shared her personal experience working in the hip-hop industry where she advocated for the further integration of hip-hop into schools, a luxury she said she wasn’t given.
Senior UW-Madison Elementary Education student Mary Johnson said she would use the topics addressed in Monday’s lecture, along with previous lectures in the series, to benefit her future students.
“Every week I just learn a little bit more of not only how important hip-hop is just for education but also … how I can take that reality of my students and bring it into the classroom,” Johnson said.
